Joe Flacco

Joseph Vincent Flacco (born January 16, 1985) is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL).

Flacco was born on January 16, 1985, in Audubon, New Jersey, the eldest of five sons to Karen (née Madden) and Steve Flacco.

The Flacco family is originally from Haddon Township, New Jersey.

Flacco played football, baseball, and basketball at Audubon High School and was the starting quarterback for the Green Wave.

Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Flacco was listed as No. 39 among quarterback prospects in the class of 2003.

Flacco was redshirted as a freshman for the Pittsburgh Panthers football team that went 8–5 in 2003.

In 2004, Flacco was the backup quarterback behind starter Tyler Palko, who led the team to an 8–4 record.

He saw action in three games against Ohio University, University of Nebraska, and the University of South Florida.

Flacco threw only four passes and finished the season with one completion for 11 yards and a 25-yard punt.

Flacco transferred to the University of Delaware in 2005, but was not eligible to play that season.

He saw his first full-time action during the 2006 season, throwing for 2,783 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.

The Fightin' Blue Hens ultimately struggled to a 5–6 record and failed to qualify for the FCS playoffs.

In the 2007 season, Flacco led his team to an 8–3 regular-season record while compiling 4,263 yards, 23 touchdowns and 5 interceptions.

Arguably his best game came against Navy where he threw for 434 yards and four touchdowns.

Flacco showed another solid performance in the first-ever meeting against the Delaware State Hornets in the first round of the playoffs.

Behind Omar Cuff's record-setting day, Flacco threw efficiently for 189 yards and a touchdown, leading the Blue Hens to a 44–7 victory.

Flacco continued Delaware's playoff run by upsetting the Northern Iowa Panthers 39–27 in the FCS quarterfinals and upsetting the Southern Illinois Salukis 20–17 the next weekend in the semifinals.

Flacco threw two touchdowns to win against both the Panthers and Salukis, but went on to lose in the FCS National Championship Game to the Appalachian State Mountaineers 49–21.

Flacco set 20 school records during his career at Delaware.

At Delaware, Flacco was pessimistic about his chances to play in the NFL, and after his junior year asked his coach for permission to play baseball.

The coach predicted that he would be selected in the NFL Draft, surprising Flacco.

He played college football at Delaware after transferring from Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Flacco has also played for the Denver Broncos and New York Jets.

Flacco was Baltimore's starting quarterback from 2008 until midway through the 2018 season and helped lead the Ravens to the playoffs six times; during his tenure in Baltimore, the Ravens won the AFC North twice, appeared in three AFC Championship Games, and beat the San Francisco 49ers to win Super Bowl XLVII following the 2012 season.

Flacco was named Super Bowl XLVII's MVP, concluding a postseason run in which he tied Joe Montana's single postseason record for touchdown passes (11) without an interception.

That off-season, he signed a six-year contract worth $120.6 million, a record high for a quarterback at the time.

With a solid showing at the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine, Flacco solidified himself as a top five quarterback in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Flacco won the long distance throw competition in ESPN's State Farm College Football All-Star Challenge with a 74-yard throw, beating out Matt Ryan, Colt Brennan, Chad Henne, and John David Booty, later winning the Taco Bell Quarterback Scramble with a time of 15.72 seconds.

Members of the Baltimore Ravens' front office, having attended Flacco's workout at the Senior Bowl, were impressed by his ability to throw in rainy and windy conditions.

Flacco again impressed the Ravens' personnel in the poor weather conditions of his workout at Delaware, despite their low expectations given Delaware's small-school pedigree—Flacco performed the workout on an uncut, unlined field with his own footballs.

Ravens assistant general manager Eric DeCosta later stated the workouts left him confident Flacco could succeed in the late-season conditions in Pittsburgh and Cleveland.

Flacco was drafted by the Ravens in the first round as the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft after the team traded out of the eighth overall selection to the 26th, then up again.

The selection made Flacco the highest drafted player ever from the University of Delaware.

A decline in performance and a hip injury resulted in Flacco losing his starting position to Lamar Jackson; he was subsequently traded to the Denver Broncos in 2019.

A neck injury cut his season short with the Broncos, and he was waived with a failed physical designation.

He joined the New York Jets in 2020 as a backup to Sam Darnold.

He signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021 but was traded back to the Jets after they lost Zach Wilson to injury.

Flacco joined the Cleveland Browns midway through the 2023 season following a season-ending injury to Deshaun Watson, where he led the Browns to a playoff berth and won the Comeback Player of the Year award.

As of the 2023 NFL season, Flacco has the most career passing yards and touchdowns for any quarterback who has never been to a Pro Bowl (he was invited to the 2015 Pro Bowl following the 2014 season, but declined).

Flacco is also known for having one of the strongest arms in the NFL.